


Curly Locks and Smiles

by greendoodle



Series: Owlr Happy Family [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Slight Angst, M/M, Past Child Abuse, tobio's fam is hardly in here but XD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-22
Updated: 2016-05-22
Packaged: 2018-06-10 02:52:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6936229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greendoodle/pseuds/greendoodle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>“What do YOU think, Shouyou?”</i>
</p><p>  <i>It was obvious what his son thought. His eyes were wide open and his mouth was agape as he eyed the azure bowtie that had white polka dots on it. “Stars!”</i></p><p>  <i>“There you have it,” Akaashi turned back to Bokuto and smiled, emerald eyes shining in admiration. “You’re a star.”</i></p><p>  <i>Bokuto felt as if he were the luckiest man on earth.</i></p><p> </p><p>or: Bokuto falls in love with hot dad Akaashi and they become a happy family together with a little crow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Curly Locks and Smiles

**Author's Note:**

> ..are my fics getting longer and longer or is it just me;
> 
> As promised, here is the fluff I said I would attempt to write! XD  
> It's my first time writing anything other than angst and pain so hopefully it's cute enough;;
> 
> ((I apologize for my absence for the past month -- finals hell is now over and it's summer so be on the lookout for more frequent updates!))

Bokuto Koutarou looked down from the beautiful man who had appeared in front of him to the orange-colored blur of a kid that was now bouncing around the two of them.

Uncanny resemblance.

Probably not in mannerisms because the man seemed to be fairly composed in contrast the 3-year-old child who was a ball of boundless energy, but there were definitely similarities in their curly hair—

“Well?”

Bokuto bolted, directing his gaze to meet the other man’s and replying with a loud, “yes!”

The neatly dressed man looked a bit taken aback by the deafening response, but continued his interrogation with a stern glare and crossed arms. “I ask again: why are you with my son?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Bokuto saw the kid slowly pause in his jumping as he came to realize the heavy atmosphere between the two adults. Directing his attention back to the man who was transparently angry with him for seemingly abducting his child, he gulped once, twice, desperately hoping his brain would allow him to find the words he needed to explain the situation to the looming father who was way too hot for his own good.

“I, uh,” he began, uncertain where to start, “Together in the playground, you know, we’re just having a good time,” he stuttered, tripping over his words, gripping the railing of the stairs leading up to the jungle gym. He stammered a bit more, words incoherent, shifting the weight on his left foot to his right and vice versa. “...for fun.”

The man hesitated for a moment, looking down at the unruly white-and-black mane Bokuto called a hairstyle and finally sighed, unfolding his arms.

“It doesn’t look like you were trying anything funny,” the man replied, smiling softly. Even though he was looking downward, Bokuto felt a warmth in those words. Feeling as if he had escaped the hole he dug himself, Koutarou looked up and immediately felt blinded by the radiance this man exuded through his tender expression.

The man softened upon seeing Bokuto’s face lift toward him with eyes practically begging for forgiveness. “I’m sorry,” he said, genuinely apologetic. “I’m just very protective of Shouyou.”

“Dad!” The ginger kid yelped, jumping from step to step on the jungle gym weaving around Bokuto’s legs. “Grandpa is so cool! He’s super strong and can throw me and he went across the monkey bars like it was nothing! When he pushed me on the swings, I went super high like I was flying!! It was like WHOOSH and SWOOSH!!”

Bokuto stared dumbfounded at the toddler, Shouyou, as he bounced up and down waving his arms while recounting his adventures with an elderly man. It wasn’t until the beautiful man started laughing that he realized Shouyou was talking about him.

“Hey, hey!” he retorted with a slight pout, reaching forward to attack the boy with tickles. “I’m not that old! I just like my hair this way!”

Shouyou let out a burst of giggles and ran away after prying himself from Bokuto’s grasp, leaving the two men alone. In the silence, Bokuto stood up straight, sheepishly scratching the back of his head. His heart thudded loudly in his ears. “I uh…”

The man smiled again, stretching his hand forward. “I’m Akaashi Keiji. Nice to meet you.”

Bokuto took the hand with eagerness, nearly knocking the man over as he shouted his own name in response. “B-Bokuto Koutarou! I play volleyball at the university down the street as a college senior and I visited this park for a breath of fresh air! I saw your kid running around by himself and I wanted to join him! I’m sorry for any inconvenience!”

Akaashi stared at him, eyes wide, but after a few moments, burst into laughter. Bokuto felt his ears go red. Why had he done that? The man was clearly married. He shouldn’t be getting all tongue tied over a guy who was taken. He opened his mouth again to apologize, but Akaashi interrupted his thoughts.

“Well, thank you for taking care of my son. He’s a handful to take care of on my own, but I love him.”

“No, no! Thank your son for being so fun!”

Bokuto winced inwardly. Nope.

“Thank him for being so light and easy to carry!”

Try again.

“Thank you for leaving him here alone!”

Once more?

“I love your son!”

…shit.

Now he had dug himself into that hole again. Bokuto buried his face in his hands and groaned, feeling his cheeks flush a rosy red. “I’m sorry, just ignore me…”

Bokuto received a snicker in response and looking through the hole between his fingers, saw Akaashi scrunch up his nose in amusement, his emerald eyes alight with joy.

Bokuto fell.

Hard.

\-----

He could say he fell in love, but rather, he actually fell. Literally.

His grip slipped on the jungle gym steps and he flew forward, smacking his head into the playground’s unforgiving black flooring. Bokuto was whisked to the hospital with a slight concussion, and forced to take a week off of volleyball practice. Usually news like that would be enough to deter him, but after waking up in the white sheets and turning over to see a note tucked under a book on the stand next to him from a certain beautiful man, he couldn’t be more overjoyed.

In the time he was stuck in the hospital recovering, he had turned that note over and over in his hands, running a finger over the elegant cursive that read, “Shouyou had fun. I’m sure he’d love to play with you again sometime,” with a contact number clearly scribbled on the side.

Bokuto knew it was just a play date and not an actual date, but he still felt lucky to be able to see Akaashi again. He stared up at the ceiling, desperately drowning his feelings of longing for the man with emerald eyes and curly locks. He shakily grabbed his phone and sent out a text that was hopefully more coherent than his words were on that day.

\-----

Akaashi Keiji was single.

He was a single father who worked as a composer straight out of high school. His compositions were well received by those in the musical industry, but he kept his identity a secret because he disliked the attention. He was also a year younger than Bokuto much to the surprise of both.

Regarding Shouyou’s mother, Bokuto had no information about her, but Akaashi had apparently gotten a divorce. He was uncomfortable sharing the details with Bokuto as of yet, but, that was okay. Everything was okay.

After all, Akaashi “Gorgeous” Keiji was single.

Bokuto knew he shouldn’t have been as happy as he was upon discovering this tidbit of information because he was more than perfectly certain that Akaashi was straight.

But even so, Koutarou couldn’t help noticing the way Akaashi’s slender fingers brushed his curly hair behind his ear in one fluid motion. Or the way his lips puckered ever so slightly in disapproval right before he went to reprimand his son for a hyperactive incident involving toys and spilt food. Or even the way Akaashi’s eyes fluttered shut for a moment too long between blinks after an all-nighter, eyelashes alluring, inviting, sending butterflies flying in Bokuto's stomach.

Of course, he was happy enough playing with Shouyou. Over the past few weeks, Bokuto had served as the family’s personal babysitter. Because Akaashi needed quiet whenever he created a new song, he had Bokuto watch a movie or play board games in the living room with his son as he himself stayed in the study, focusing on getting work done. Akaashi should have known better after that incident in the playground when they first met, but after a cracked vase or two, he finally asked Bokuto to take Shouyou and play outside. The two ‘children’ complied quite willingly as they visited nearby parks and embarked on epic ‘adventures’ together through Tokyo, weaving through the city crowds with a sense of purpose. Needless to say, they all got along swimmingly.

And so the months went on, Bokuto visiting Akaashi and Shouyou regularly at their small apartment complex between his volleyball practices and studies. After his classes, Koutarou ran over to the preschool Shouyou attended and picked him up, walking back home together. There, Akaashi was waiting with a warm, cooked meal that the three of them enjoyed, Bokuto and Shouyou making most of the conversation while the ‘adult’ of the table acted as the mediator through pleasant smiles and laughs. Afterwards, Akaashi headed into his study to work and Bokuto and Shouyou flew out the door together, hand-in-hand, like two best friends. When Koutarou returned, usually with Shouyou slung around his shoulders in a gentle piggyback, the latter tuckered out from all the fun they had, Akaashi gently took his son from Bokuto and after talking with Koutarou for half an hour, bid the college student goodnight. The weekends were similar, but because Akaashi wanted to spend time with his son on Saturdays and Sundays, Bokuto only babysat when the composer was overloaded with tasks to complete given to him by his manager.

Koutarou was fine with things like this. He was content staying friends with the beautiful man and his smiling son with all their curly hair. He felt at home there, looking around the living room at photographs of the ginger kid on the walls in neatly arranged photo frames. He liked being able to peek into the study room Akaashi worked in from time to time whenever chance permitted it, seeing the man working with intense concentration. Bokuto merely enjoyed being in the company of Akaashi who he liked and Shouyou who he also liked. It was also a good break from his studies at university. It was as simple as that.

Or at least, that’s what he told himself.

In reality, he was becoming more and more enamored with Akaashi by the day. Akaashi, the composer, Akaashi, the father, Akaashi, the underclassman he’s always wished he had. The one who patiently talked to him and Shouyou, the one who smiled the sweetest smile of angels, the one who worked diligently and efficiently in everything he did. Bokuto wished he could hold him in his arms, join this family that was so picture perfect to him. But, he had resolved from the beginning to hold his tongue and support the two without getting too involved. So one weekend when Shouyou asked his father a question out of curiosity after a babysitting session with Bokuto, the college student nearly choked in response.

“Dad, can Bokuto-san be my other dad?”

Akaashi blinked, looking down at those inquiring eyes, and squeezed Shouyou’s hand slightly before kneeling down to meet his son at eye level. “What brought this up?”

Shouyou fidgeted before responding quite bluntly, “Tobio from preschool has two dads and I thought that wasn’t fair.”

Akaashi was silent for what seemed to be an eternity and Bokuto felt himself panicking, almost speaking up to say something along the lines of, ‘Oh, kids these days, aren’t they so silly?’ when Akaashi looked up at him from his position next to Shouyou and stated, matter-of-factly, “Well,” he smiled, a grin reaching ears that were turning a rosy pink. “That’s completely up to Bokuto-san, isn’t it?”

\-----

The confession had gone as smoothly as Bokuto had hoped. Or rather, he was just glad nothing went wrong. Scratch that—he was glad nothing had gone HORRIBLY wrong given how flustered he was. After Shouyou was put to bed, Bokuto had sit with Akaashi for a long time at the dining table, rambling on and on about how gay he was for him and how he loved the way Akaashi did this or that and how he couldn’t imagine his life without him anymore. After Bokuto’s ramble, Akaashi had gently placed his hands on top of Koutarou’s and replied with a simple, “I know.”

They started dating the following week.

Bokuto stood stiffly at the front door, a bit hot under the collar, but happy nevertheless. Ringing the doorbell, he gripped the roses he had picked up from the local florist and whispered a prayer under his breath, hoping everything would go well.

Opening the door with Shouyou on his hip, Akaashi smiled upon seeing him, teasing, “Well, aren’t you fancy tonight, Bokuto-san?”

Bokuto nervously adjusted his blue and white bowtie, a bit uncertain in his choice of attire. His gray dress vest suddenly felt very heavy against his chest and his black dress shoes were suddenly too shiny for his liking. Fidgeting slightly, he quietly asked, “Do you not like it?”

Akaashi suppressed a laugh and looked down at his son, bouncing him slightly in his arms. “What do YOU think, Shouyou?”

It was obvious what his son thought. His eyes were wide open and his mouth was agape as he eyed the azure bowtie that had white polka dots on it. “Stars!”

“There you have it,” Akaashi turned back to Bokuto and smiled, emerald eyes shining in admiration. “You’re a star.”

Bokuto felt as if he were the luckiest man on earth.

\-----

After leaving Shouyou at Tobio’s house where the raven-haired boy’s parents, Sawamura Daichi and Sugawara Koushi, fussed over how cute the ginger kid was, the two went to eat dinner together as a formal couple.

They had many more dates after that, often ending with pecks on the cheek or mouth, words too sweet to swallow, and caresses that lingered for days without end.

Eventually, Bokuto brought up living together. Akaashi paused after that, becoming distant, secluded. Koutarou wondered if he had done anything wrong, but tried not to press the suggestion further. He continued as the family babysitter without acknowledging the strange silence that had settled around them. He desperately hoped he had not made a blunder somewhere along the way because he didn’t want to become a burden in their lives. Then one night, after Shouyou was put to bed, Akaashi called Bokuto to the couch for a chat. They sat together in silence, Akaashi fiddling with his fingers and Bokuto merely eyeing his new boyfriend with concern.

Finally, “Are you sure you want this Bokuto-san?”

Bokuto slumped visibly in relief. He had wondered why Akaashi seemed out of sorts, but now it all seemed crystal clear. Koutarou gently took those slender fingers into his more calloused ones and waited until he locked eyes with Akaashi before speaking.

“Yes,” he bore his steady amber gaze into his lover’s emerald green eyes. “More than anything.”

Akaashi felt a lump grow in his throat and swallowed unsuccessfully. He paused, staring down at their hands that were intertwined so perfectly as if the universe had placed them there from the beginning of time. Then, he looked up with Bokuto, resolution shining in his eyes.

“You need to know Shouyou’s story,”

Bokuto cocked his head slightly, but nodded shortly afterwards in seeing how serious Akaashi was. Acknowledging this gesture, Akaashi took a deep breath, letting it out shakily before he began.

“As you know, I got divorced. My fiancé and I were high school sweethearts and we were too rash, too unafraid of consequences. Maybe we loved each other, but maybe we didn’t. I don’t think I’ll ever know for sure. Either way, we got married following graduation and we had a child soon afterwards.”

Akaashi looked up to see if Bokuto was still listening and he was, with bright eyes and complete undivided attention. He continued.

“Things didn’t work out,” Akaashi laughed a bit as if that were obvious, his voice straining. “Either way, we had Shouyou and things seemed okay for a bit, but she lost her job and I was struggling with mine. We arranged for a divorce a year into our marriage. Of course, she took custody of Shouyou, but I was able to visit him every now and then which I wanted to do regularly, but often wasn’t able to because of work. Then, one day, a couple months later, I walked into the house at the wrong time. Or maybe the right time, I don’t know.”

Akaashi looked pained, distraught. Bokuto frantically squeezed his hand in reassurance, hoping it might help even slightly. It did. And Akaashi began again.

“I… didn’t know she’d do that. When she begged for custody of Shouyou, I complied quite reluctantly but only because I knew how difficult it was for a mother to be separated from her child. I know half of what happened was my fault,” his eyes glazed over, deep in remembrance. “She was away at work and Shouyou was at daycare. I thought I’d pop in for a surprise visit. I went into the house with a spare key from the landlord and decided to cook something for the two of them to enjoy. I noticed the living room was untidy so I went around organizing things to make it easier on her when she got back. Eventually, I was cleaning up the whole house. I came across my old study room and found it was locked. I figured she just never wanted to set foot in that room again and thus, had closed it permanently. I found the key to the door under the couch so for old time’s sake, I entered. There, on the floor, I found Shouyou huddled up against the wall of the barren room, shivering and shaking.”

Bokuto started, confusion in his eyes, his brows furrowing. “What? Why was he there?”

“She hadn’t been taking him to daycare. She thought it was a waste of money and so she left him, a 2-year-old, home alone. And whenever she got back home, she’d keep him there too, telling him to be quiet and not make a sound no matter what because her head hurt too much, she was too stressed, too tired to deal with him. If he ever disobeyed, she hit him,” Akaashi replied, fists clenching. “Thankfully, that only lasted for half a year, but, when I think about Shouyou alone in that room, crying silently, unable to flash that beautiful smile of his, it just…”

He gripped Bokuto’s hands tightly. They sat in silence for a moment, Bokuto’s mind racing, trying to comprehend the injustice while Akaashi silently sniffled next to him, tears slowly rolling down his cheeks. At last, Koutarou returned the squeeze, gently caressing his boyfriend’s hands, prompting him to continue.

Akaashi breathed in sharply with his nose. “When I found him like that, I immediately ran to him and tried to scoop him up in my arms, but he started crying and yelling, ‘no more,’ ‘sorry,’ and ‘stop.’” Akaashi paused, his eyes flooding with fresh tears. “Can you imagine? A 2-year-old is only starting to formulate sentences and he barely knows any words, but those were some of the first ones I heard from him. I just…” his breath hitched in his throat. “I can’t forgive myself for leaving him alone like that.”

At this, Bokuto pulled Akaashi into a tight embrace, his hands holding the small, shaking frame beneath him as if the moment he let go, he’d lose him forever. His right hand trailed up to run its fingers through Akaashi’s hair, each lock falling gently against Bokuto’s skin.

“Akaashi, it wasn’t your fault,” Koutarou repeated, over and over, hoping the truth would stick. “Everything’s fine, right? Shouyou is fast asleep in his room and I’m here.” He continued repeating that phrase for what seemed to be an eternity, mentally cursing his inability to formulate the right words for the situation. “I’m here, I’m here. I’ll always be here.”

Akaashi cried into Bokuto’s shoulder, his fingers clutching the back of Bokuto’s shirt, clenching, unclenching… letting go of all the guilt and pain he had felt over the past two years. And Bokuto, as he stated he would do, stayed there through it all, whispering words of affirmation over and over until the tears finally dried.

Pulling back from their embrace, Akaashi smiled softly, eyes red and cheeks wet. He slowly brought up his sleeve to wipe his face and Bokuto jolted in response, standing up with a loud yell about fetching him a tissue box, but his boyfriend shook his head, refusing to let go of the hands that were still intertwined as one.

Eventually, Akaashi pulled a few photographs from under the couch and handed them to Bokuto. All the pictures captured a family of three smiling: A serene smile from Akaashi who was noticeably younger, a small, giggling infant with a mess of orange curls on his head, and a grinning lady who had straight ginger hair reaching down to her waist. Bokuto noticed how beautiful she was and felt a twinge of inferiority, before looking back up at Akaashi.

“What does Shouyou think of her?”

“He doesn’t really understand, I guess. He’s too young, you know? He just recognizes that his mother has gone and I think that fact alone upset him a lot.”

“Does he still ask about her now?”

Akaashi shook his head, smiling. “He only talks about you now.”

\-----

Bokuto finally moved in with Akaashi and Shouyou.

The morning of the move-in was cheerful. The sun was shining and the birds were chirping loudly as if celebrating this momentous occasion with their song. Akaashi took the day off work to help Bokuto move in, a smile never leaving his face, the two of them grinning from ear to ear as they moved in sync to pack Koutarou’s belongings at the university dorm.

Shouyou was visibly joyful as well, hopping around the college students as he accompanied them on campus and continuing to jump around energetically as Bokuto brought in a few boxes of his belongings to their apartment. After the toddler ignored the several requests to stop from Akaashi ‘lest he hurt himself’, Bokuto finally stepped in, grabbing the child in midair and swinging him around before plopping down with him on the couch.

“My little wingman!”

Shouyou giggled, “Does that mean I can fly?”

“Let’s find out!”

At that, Bokuto threw Shouyou up in the air and the two of them flew around the apartment making bird noises ranging from crows to owls. Akaashi lifted his hands up hoping he could at least make his newly betrothed stop, but gave up after a while, a smile splitting his face. He eventually ran forward to steal Shouyou from Bokuto’s arms and took off towards the bedroom to snuggle the laughing boy in fluffy sheets with Koutarou following directly behind him to do the same to Keiji.

\-----

After a week of living together under the same roof, Bokuto began to have doubts. He felt out of place staying with two perfect people who he loved. Two perfect people who had a beautiful mother figure in their lives before this, before him. Bokuto frequently remembered the photographs he was shown and time and time again felt as if he didn’t belong somehow. One Saturday, he finally voiced his insecurities as the family got up from the couch to eat lunch at midday.

“I don’t know,” he stammered, laughing sheepishly. “Do YOU guys really want me here? I’m kind of the worst at this father thing. I don’t know what I should do half the time and if I fit in well… I mean, I love playing with Shouyou, but that’s all I have in common with you two, I don’t have curly hair like you both or the right words to give in a lot of situations, and I can be loud and cause more trouble than Shouyou from time to time,” He directed his eyes to the floor, brows furrowing. “I just don’t know if you guys would be better off without me or not.”

Bokuto balled his fists up tightly. He hated himself for being dejected like this. He should have been content living with the two people he loved more than anything and yet he felt crippled by his own inadequacy. He felt lost, pathetic even. Immediately upon disclosing his insecurities, he regretted it, seeing his husband pause abruptly on his way to the kitchen.

Akaashi smiled and gently took Bokuto’s hands into his own, patiently waiting until they made eye contact. “Bokuto-san,” he began, biding Shouyou to join them in holding hands. “You brought laughter back into our lives.”

“Shouyou is pretty happy without me though…”

“We’re happier WITH you.”

“But,”

“You know those noises Shouyou makes?” Akaashi waited until he got a slight nod in response before continuing. “I gave him that habit. I was desperate to get any kind of reaction out of him after I took him under my custody. He didn’t say anything for a long time. He refused to eat or play or even sleep so I started yelling, ‘Look at that bird, Shouyou! Oooh!!’ or ‘Time to go to bed! Woosh!’ and eventually, he began talking normally again, he started looking happier, and he smiled more. He was able to attend preschool with the others his age. Then, a few months later, we found you.” Akaashi laughed softly. “Now, there’s not a moment he’s not smiling. And of course, it’s the same for me as well.”

Bokuto smiled, feeling his heart lift. Akaashi returned the gesture, rubbing his hand softly. The moment broke as Hinata smacked their hands in rapid succession. The two looked down at the orange-haired boy who had his mouth wide open in a gap-toothed grin looking directly at Bokuto.

“Dad, but you have curls too!”

Bokuto paused, confused. “Where?”

The toddler threw his hands up in the air and in response, Bokuto knelt down to meet him eye-to-eye. Shouyou moved his fingers to trace over the lines of his father’s smile. “Riiiight here!”

Bokuto felt his eyes sting. He laughed, a bit teary, grabbing his son and commencing a tickle attack. “Alright, ya sap, time for bed!”

Shouyou shrieked in delight, running off down the hallway to take cover in his room. Bokuto watched him go, his insecurities lifting.

“You’re the sap, Bokuto-san,”

“Akaashi!” Bokuto whined, pout clearly visible on his lips, but when he turned to look at his lover, he found him crying. Bokuto quickly closed the distance between them and planted a firm kiss against his lips, brushing the stray hair on Akaashi’s forehead to rest behind his ear.

Breathless, lips parted slightly from their kiss, Akaashi looked down at Bokuto’s chest, eyes glazing over with tears. “See? Total sap.”

Bokuto snickered, bringing their foreheads to touch. “Well, I just hope I’m not a total di-SAP-pointment then,”

Akaashi laughed, throwing his arms around Bokuto’s neck and burying himself in his husband’s shoulder. “You’re the worst,” he breathed, smiling nevertheless. “Go bring Shouyou back so we can eat.”

\-----

The next morning, Bokuto opened his eyes to meet the sun shining through the window to their bedroom. He blinked a few times before slowly sitting up in the white sheets the family all shared.

He saw his husband at his side, the gradual rise and fall of his chest, fast asleep. Bokuto smiled, leaning forward to kiss his forehead. Akaashi mumbled something, groaning a bit, and turned over, breathing stabilizing once more. Bokuto looked to his other side and saw Shouyou fast asleep as well, thumb in his mouth. Akaashi had told him that Shouyou had been sleeping next to him ever since he took custody of the child in order to soothe the toddler’s fears of being left alone again. Upon hearing that, Bokuto was more than glad to share a large bed with all three of them.

He ran his fingers through the mess of curls on his son’s head, watching as Shouyou shifted slightly, making sloppy smacking sounds before sticking his finger back into his mouth.

Bokuto got up from the bed and walked over to the stand, pouring himself a glass of water. Taking a sip, his eyes found itself to rest on the framed picture on the wall showing all three of them together in a group photo. In the portrait, Bokuto had his arm wrapped around Akaashi’s shoulders, grinning wide from ear to ear. Akaashi looked a bit exasperated at his husband’s enthusiasm, but his lips were curled up in a pleasant laugh as well. And right between them, Shouyou was there, beaming with that gap-toothed smile of his.

Bokuto walked over to the photograph and stared at it lovingly. They were both so beautiful. His family. Their family.

He heard a rustle behind him and turned to see Shouyou rubbing his eyes sleepily and looking towards him. “Dad?”

Bokuto silently placed a single finger over his own mouth, whispering a quick, “Shh,” before walking over to sit next to Shouyou on the edge of the bed. “Your father’s still sleeping.”

Shouyou paused and then looked to see that Akaashi was indeed still fast asleep. Nevertheless, he stood up on the bed and tumbled over with uneasy steps into Bokuto’s arms. He looked up at his dad and grinned, making himself comfortable in his lap.

Koutarou smiled at this, and picked up his phone from the floor where it was charging to see the time. 7 o’ clock. Akaashi usually slept in til 9.

He felt a movement and looked down to see Shouyou tugging at his shirt. “What’s up?”

“Don’t cry,” his son said, his eyes full of concern.

Bokuto started at this and soon realized tears were running down his face. He laughed them away, bringing his shoulder up to wipe the wetness from his cheeks. “I’m just… happy you’re happy. I’m happy we can be a family together. You, me, and your dad.”

Shouyou tilted his head in slight confusion before smacking his father right in the stomach. Although his abs softened the blow, Koutarou still inwardly winced at the blow and pouted a bit. “What was that for?”

“You can’t cry when I’m happy because that makes me sad,” the ginger stated as if it were the most obvious fact in the world.

Bokuto snickered, leaning down to nuzzle noses with Shouyou. “You’re definitely your father’s son. You both have the most painful jabs – literally and figuratively.”

Shouyou frowned. “Are you going to stop crying?”

“Yes, yes,”

Bokuto lifted his son up and placed him on the bedroom floor. Shouyou looked reluctant to leave his father’s warm embrace, but looked up at him with inquiring eyes.

“Ready for some breakfast?”

Shouyou breathed out happily, eyes shining as he ran out the door immediately heading for the dining room. Bokuto stood up as well, looking back at his husband and then back at the picture on the wall.

Walking out of the bedroom himself and quietly closing the door behind him, he smiled widely. A curl on his face that matched the curls on the heads of the two people he loved most.

Bokuto heard a yell of excitement from the kitchen. He grinned and ran after his son, both of their laughter resounding off the walls of the place all three of them called home.

**Author's Note:**

> I plan to add more to this series with little cute ideas I had floating around here and there! Hopefully they'll be nice little breathers between all the angst I have planned for this summer eheheh.  
> Basically my idea for this was-- I keep seeing Bokuto as the 'single father figure' for Shouyou, but I thought biologically, Shouyou would fit as Akaashi's son better. And thus, this fic was born! Hopefully it made you smile, hehe~
> 
> Please let me know if you see any typos or mistakes!  
> ALSO!! You can talk to me at my tumblr (at the same username) and on my twitter @tetsookie! :D (Please do, I need more BokuAka friends..)
> 
>  **LASTLY, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT AND COMMENTS!!! ^_^**  
>  I've been pretty unhappy with my writing as of late, but getting such kind feedback has been really encouraging for me! I've been pretty motivated to write more because of all the kind people down in the comments so you can thank them for all this good ol' owl love.


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